Parliament set for fiery debate on Pahalgam attack, Operation Sindoor

New Delhi: The first week of disruption in Parliament’s Monsoon session is set to give way to a fiery debate on the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor from Monday as the ruling alliance and the Opposition will lock horns over the two issues framed around national security and foreign policy imperatives.

The BJP-led ruling National Democratic Alliance and opposition parties are expected to field their top guns during the discussion in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

Sources said Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be speaking on the issues amid indications that Prime Minister Narendra Modi may make an intervention to convey his government’s track record of a “robust” stand on national security.

Leaders of the Opposition in both Houses, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, may lead the charge against the government along with Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav, besides a host of other leaders.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju had said on July 25, after the first week of session ended up a virtual washout, that the Opposition has agreed to the start of a discussion on the twin issues in the Lok Sabha on Monday, followed by Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

The two sides have consented to a marathon 16-hour debate in each House, which invariably stretches longer in practice.

Besides its battery of ministers and leaders like Anurag Thakur, Sudhanshu Trivedi and Nishikant Dubey, the ruling NDA is expected to field its members from the seven multi-party delegations that had travelled to over 30 world capitals to present India’s case after Operation Sindoor.

They include Shrikant Shinde of the Shiv Sena, Sanjay Jha of the JD(U), and Harish Balayogi of the TDP, among others.

A big question mark is on whether Shashi Tharoor, who had led the delegation to the US among other countries, will be picked as speaker by the Congress, as the seasoned Lok Sabha member’s enthusiastic endorsement of the government’s action following the terror attack has soured his ties with his party.

Since he led an important delegation, a way may be found for him to speak.

Opposition parties have framed their public criticism of the government around the alleged intelligence lapses behind the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which left 26 civilians killed, and US President Donald Trump’s claims of mediating a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.

Rahul Gandhi has repeatedly attacked the government’s foreign policy, claiming India did not receive international support in Operation Sindoor and has cited Trump’s frequent mediation claims to target the ruling alliance.

Modi, on his part, has lauded Operation Sindoor, which targeted terror sites in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack, for meeting 100 per cent of its objectives and proving the mettle of India’s indigenous defence weapons and platforms.

Both countries were involved in a four-day conflict after Pakistan retaliated against India, taking down its facilities housing terrorists. India has asserted that several air bases of the neighbouring country suffered serious damage.

Modi said India has drawn a “new normal” in its response to Pakistan-linked terrorism, and it will not differentiate between terrorists and their sponsors.

A bone of contention that remains between the government and the Opposition is the latter’s demand for a discussion in Parliament over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar by the Election Commission.

A united opposition stalled Parliament in the first week primarily over this issue, as it has claimed that the exercise is aimed at helping the BJP-led alliance in the poll-bound state amid the EC’s assertion that it is solely focused on ensuring that only eligible people cast their votes.

Rijiju has said that every issue cannot be taken up for discussion in Parliament at once, and the government will take a call on the demand for debate on the SIR later, in line with the rules.